This application relates generally to a collapsible child pen. For purposes of this disclosure the term "child pen" is defined as any structure which functions to contain, in the sense of establishing metes and bounds, a child in the conduct of its various activities, e.g., playing, sleeping, etc. By way of examples, such structures include playpens, cribs, car beds, carriages and the like.
A collapsible child pen generally includes longitudinally extending structural members which are pivotably mounted relative to one another and which are pivoted relative to one another as the pen is assembled or collapsed. The invention relates particularly to a hinge joint construction for interconnecting a longitudinally extending yoke member and a longitudinally extending rod member adapted for pivotal movement relative to the yoke member as the pen is assembled.
In a collapsible child pen it is conventional to provide a yoke member and a longitudinally extending rod member having a longitudinal end which extends through an opening in a longitudinal end of the yoke and is at least partially enclosed by the yoke. It is also conventional to pivotally interconnect these members by means of a pin which is journaled in a portion of the yoke member and which extends through portions of the rod member is generally pivoted into a longitudinally coextensive orientation relative to the yoke member by means of a pivotal linkage which pivots to an over-center position to continually held the rod member in the longitudinally coextensive orientation . A surface of the yoke member engages the rod member to limit pivotal movement of the rod member past the longitudinally coextensive position.
In such a collapsible pen it has been conventional for many years to construct the rod member with a small enough cross section that it can pivot to a sufficient extent relative to the yoke to collapse and reassemble the pen. In doing so there is generally provided a gap between the outer surface of the rod and the portion of the yoke defining the opening. This gap is wide enough for insertion of a person's finger, particularly a child's finger, through the opening as the structure is assembled. The rod member is generally much greater in length than the yoke, and is urged toward longitudinally coextensive relation with the yoke with great force as the pivotal linkage pivots to its over-center position. This is a potential source of great danger to a person whose finger is inadvertently in that gap when the pen is assembled. In fact, this type of situation has been so dangerous that there have been actual amputations of fingers in such joints.
The child products industry has long recognized the potential hazard which such joints create. The basic response of the industry to this hazard, and which response has served as the standard construction in playards for many years, has been to provide a fabric cover over the junction of the yoke and the rod member, with the cover intended to block insertion of the assembler's fingers in the gap in the hinge joint. Finger guards, per se, have also been suggested for many years for doors and window frames, as shown for example in disclosures such as French Patent Nos. 1,310,605 and 765,310, U.S. Pat. No. 2,597,174 and German Pat. Nos. 295,693 and 216,816. These disclosures do not relate to hinges for collapsible child pen and moreover do not suggest the specific hinge construction of the present invention.